Oluwasegun Adesuyi, Author at SocietyGazette.com

Nigerians Doomed If PDP Fails To Win Presidency In 2023, Says Fayose

Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, has said he might contest the 2023 presidential election.

He, however, said he was now engrossed in the governorship election holding in his state ( Ekiti) on June 18 and how his candidate, who is the Peoples Democratic Party flag bearer in the poll, Bisi Kolawole would win the election.

The former governor said he had been calling aggrieved governorship aspirants of the PDP to make them to see reasons to support the party in the coming poll. He added that he called former Governor Segun Oni after the primary election but he did not pick the calls

Speaking in an interview with SUNDAY PUNCH, Fayose said Bisi Kolawole is very popular and would win the coming election.

Asked if he thought the PDP could win the presidential poll in 2023, Fayose stated that things would become worse and Nigerians would be made to suffer more from the APC which had been in the saddles since 2015.

He said, “If PDP does not win the 2023 election, then Nigerians are doomed. From what I have seen since 2015, Nigerians are doomed. The kind of leadership that Nigeria has witnessed – insecurity, the economy – don’t forget that the impact of these things is more felt by the masses.

” It is the people that are at the receiving end. The cost of diesel today is about N400 per litre; during President Goodluck Jonathan’s (PDP) time, it was N140, N145. Whatever we are saying, it is either Nigerians want to remain in perpetual poverty or they save themselves. It is about Nigerians themselves.”

He also boasted that he would defeat Asiwaju Bola Tinubu if the later was picked by the All Progressives Congress to contest the presidential election in 2023 but said he was not sure if he would contest the poll.

Fayose said, “PDP government is far better than APC government in Nigeria. Would he ( Tinubu) leave the APC people and come to give me appointments or will he make me vice president, such that I work for the APC? It is not possible. Tinubu is for APC, I am for PDP. All these insinuations are just to call the dog a bad name to hang it.

“I have said it over and over, Asiwaju remains a Yoruba leader; I remain a Yoruba leader. We are in different levels of leadership. But if I am being misquoted for the fact that I said Asiwaju is a Yoruba leader, I am saying I am a Yoruba leader, but the Asiwaju in his own Yoruba leadership is in the APC; Ayo Fayose in his own leadership is in PDP.

” Who has told you that I don’t want to be President? Who has told you that if the PDP picks me that I will not defeat Asiwaju? Who has told you? You don’t know maybe I will still contest? If I come out and they zone it to South-West and they say it’s Fayose, if they pick Asiwaju, I will defeat him!”

Fayose also debunked the insinuations that he would trade away the candidate of the PDP in the June 18 governorship poll asking the people to discountenance such claims.

“You know we are politicians; we like to say things to destroy one another. I have served this state twice, if anybody should concede to anybody, it should be Fayemi conceding to me. It would not be a healthy election! What does Fayemi want to offer me? Even when I was supposed to be cowed as a sitting governor in the face of the federal might, I was never cowed; I faced the whole of them.

” Against the present APC government in Nigeria, I was and I am a major voice; nobody can take that away from me. What is in Ekiti that I will want to compromise? Is it the resources or what? What will Fayemi buy my conscience with or what will I buy Fayemi’s conscience with? If you are saying somebody is popular, there is no denying that they all know that I am on the ground.

“Let me give you an instance; the Governor of Akwa Ibom came to conduct the PDP election, he stayed in the Government House. The Deputy Governor of Taraba State came to conduct election, he stayed in the Government House, courtesy of the deputy governor, though in the APC. When the Akwa Ibom State Governor was leaving, his helicopter landed at the Government House’s helipad, and courtesy demands that as a former governor I should go and say goodbye.

” So, I went to the Government House, met Jigawa State Governor Abubakar Badaru, who came to conduct the APC governorship election. The four of us took pictures and I was the one who posted that picture – clear conscience fears no foes. If I had hidden agenda, why did I have to post the picture? I posted the picture and I stated before the fifth columnists start their wagging, I am in the Government House of Ekiti to see off Governor Udom and I saw Governor of Jigawa there and Fayemi and we took these pictures. That shows that I know them. They ( those insinuating compromise) are cheap blackmailers,” he added.

My New Album Might Be My Last – Olamide reveals

Popular Nigerian singer, Olamide Adedeji, on Saturday disclosed that his new album is 95 percent ready.
The award-winning singer who disclosed this on his Twitter account stated that he is not sure of when he would be releasing the album.

According to Olamide, he is taking his time to ensure that his forthcoming album will be the best ever.

He further stated that the album which he dubbed, ‘Unruly’ might be his last album, but he would drop singles once a while.

Olamide wrote, “Next Album = #Unruly 95% ready. Release date = I don’t know
Taking my time to make it the best ever… probably my last album.

Though I’ll drop singles once in a blue moon when I feel like it. It’s been a mad ass run; giving albums back to back.”

Panic As Fire Guts Shops At Veritas Varsity

Students of Veritas University Abuja were thrown into panic in the early hours of Saturday, after fire razed some shops located within the boys hostel.

The incident occured in the early hours of Saturday at the campus located in Bwari Area Council of Federal Capital Territory.

The Veritas University Public Relation Officer, Evelyn Obekpa, who confirmed the incident to THE WHISTLER, said the institution received a distress call in the early hours of Saturday.

She said, “This is to react to the purported story making the round about a fire outbreak in Veritas University Abuja.

“Here is the truth. Five make-shift shops within the university campus were affected in a fire-out break at about 1am today, Saturday, 5th February 2022.

“Those shops are mostly kitchens operated by food vendors within the university. The extent of the damage is yet to be ascertained.

“The makeshifts are on the way that leads to the boys hostel, and among the shops affected is one that belongs to a bean cake seller.

“The person who fries Akara (bean cake) did not put off the fire properly and then took the wood into the shop, and that resulted to the raze. No casualty recorded so far. “

Obekpa stated that they contacted the Federal Fire Service immediately the fire was discovered, adding that the Service swiftly intervened.

The Federal Fire Service Public Relations Officer, Abraham Paul when contacted, confirmed the incident, adding that the cause of the fire could not be immediately ascertained.

He said, “We can confirm that we got a distress call around 1am today and we referred them to FCT Fire Service in Bwari. As to the level of damage and cause of the fire ,our investigators would hit the place and inform us after their investigation.”

Veritas University is a private institution founded by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria through a resolution given at its March 2002 meeting in Abuja.

BREAKING: Ex-Gov Oni dumps PDP for Ekiti 2022

Ahead of the June 18 governorship poll in Ekiti State, former Governor Segun Oni and first-runner up in the just-concluded governorship primaries of the opposition People’s Democratic Party(PDP) has withdrawn his membership of the PDP.

The Director of Media and Publicity of Segun Oni Movement Adebayo Jackson confirmed this to The Nation in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti state on Saturday.

Oni has however not indicated the party he would be pitching tent with.

But speculations are rife that the Ex-Governor may join All Progressives Grand Alliance(AGPA) to contest the governorship poll.

Details shortly……

AFCON 2021: Liverpool Coach, Klopp Warns Salah, Mane Ahead Of Final

Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp has reacted to Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane’s outstanding performances in the 2021 African Cup of Nations tournament.
Naija News reports that the two Reds’ forward helped their nation qualify for the finals after beating their opponents in the semi-final.

Egypt had defeated AFCON host Cameroon on penalties, while Senegal also won 3-1 against Burkina Faso.

Reacting to the development, Klopp has told Salah and Mane that one of them will suffer heartbreak after full-time in the final match.

Egypt will face Senegal in the 2021 AFCON final this Sunday in Cameroon.

Klopp, however, during his pre-match press conference ahead of Liverpool’s FA Cup fourth-round tie against Cardiff City on Sunday, said it won’t be easy for one of the African players as one will win and the other will lose.

He commended the players saying “Great achievement for both [Salah and Mane] getting through to the [AFCON] final.”

Klopp added: “Naby [Keita of Guinea] played an exceptional tournament as well. So far, a really successful tournament for our boys and it will be exciting.

“It won’t be easy because one will be really happy afterwards and one less so. It’s a chance to achieve something really big.”

Speaking on the availability of both Salah and Mane for Liverpool’s Premier League fixture against Leicester on Thursday, Klopp added: “I think they will be available, but we will see.

“Tuesday or Wednesday is the latest the winner will be back, the other slightly earlier. I have to talk to them. They have rhythm as they have played quite a few games!”

“I have the Fulani brain to lead Nigeria” – Orji Kalu

A former Governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu says his perfect understanding of Nigeria, positions him as the right candidate for the 2023 presidency.

He stated this on Friday evening during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, monitored by POLITICS NIGERIA, where he spoke about his plans for the country if elected to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.

“I understand Nigeria. I know Nigeria. I have the Fulani brain, I have the Kanuri brain, I have the Yoruba brain, I have the Efik brain, I know everybody by communities, by homes. And Nigeria requires a Nigerian who will claim to be (truly) Nigerian,” he said.

Asked if he sees Bola Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos state and All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader, as a threat, Kalu answered, “No! and I am not a threat to his ambition. By the time we meet in Eagles Square, this issue will be settled.

“Mind you, politics is not only about money; it is about the people you are going to govern … the people of the north-west, the people of north-east, the people of north-central, the people of the south-east, the people of the south-west, and the people of south-south, and we have the people. I can move the people and the people are with me.”

How APC rigged 2019 election – Babangida’s spokesperson

Kassim Afegbua, spokesperson of former military president Ibrahim Babangida and one-time campaign spokesman for ex-Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, says the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) rigged the 2019 presidential election.

It will be recalled that on February 27, 2019, Atiku lost the presidential election to incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC by over 3 million votes. Atiku subsequently described the election as the “worst in Nigeria’s democratic history.”

Asked in a recent interview with Punch if he aligns with the claim that Atiku was rigged out as claimed by the former VP and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the time, Afegbua accused the APC of rigging the last presidential election through Borno and Yobe states.

“Of course we were rigged out,” he said. “They used Borno and Yobe states to rig the election. Yobe state recorded close to 84 per cent attendance; such a curious figure where insurgency has been ravaging, same goes for Borno, about 86 per cent attendance. The figures we scored in those two states affected us badly, and we felt the military under Buratai (Tukur Yusuf) might have compromised. Don’t forget that there was this issue of bullets for ballot during that election. It was like a threat and the rest, as they say is history.”

JUST IN: FG announces creation of new agency, appoints head

President Muhammadu Buhari has ratified the creation of a new government agency, the Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB).

The establishment of the agency followed a request made by the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Pantami.

In a statement issued on behalf of Pantami, Uwa Suleiman, obtained by POLITICS NIGERIA, his media aide, said the NDPB was established in line with global best practice and will focus on data protection and privacy for the country, among others.

He said the successful implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) for a Digital Nigeria has significantly increased the adoption of data platforms and accelerated the ‘datafication’ of the country. “This has increased the importance of having an institution that focuses on data protection and privacy,” he said.

“Furthermore, the issuance of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) in January 2019, as a subsidiary legislation to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Act 2007, has increased awareness about the need for data protection and privacy.”

Buhari also approved the recommendation of Pantami, for Dr. Vincent Olatunji to serve as the National Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer of the Bureau.

Dr. Olatunji hails from Ekiti State and, at the time of his appointment, was the Director of the eGovernment Development and Regulations Department at NITDA.

Osun Govt, Aregbesola Group Clash Over Gunmen Attack On Minister’s Campaign Office

The All Progressives Congress faction loyal to the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, has blamed Governor Gboyega Oyetola for the attack carried out by some gun-toting men on the old campaign office of the minister.

The attacked which happened on Thursday evening has triggered a fresh allegation and counter allegation between the two factions of the APC in Osun State.

The chairman of Aregbesola’s faction of APC in the state, Rasaq Salinsile, in a statement on the attack said the Thursday attack was the climax of the numerous attacks on those of them opposed to the style of governance of the incumbent governor.

But in a swift response to the allegation, the state government dissociated itself from any involvement in the attack.

Salinsile, in his statement, declared that the state was fast descending into anarchy under the watch of Oyetola.

The statement read in parts, “The Thursday attack climaxed a litany of others on members of the APC who are opposed to the style of governance and party administration of Governor Gboyega Oyetola in the state.

“On the 18th of November last year, a similar attack was carried out in the daylight when gunmen shot into the crowd of members at the same Oranmiyan House. Till date, nothing has been heard of that incident.

“Just on Tuesday, thugs were sent after party members in Ikirun during a Federal Constituency meeting. The police, rather than arrest the thugs that unleashed mayhem on elderly women and men, went from house to house of our leaders and members to arrest them in a midnight raid.

“They were on Wednesday sent to Ilesa correctional centre. At this stage, all we can do is to alert the whole world to the fast descent into anarchy under the watch of Governor Oyetola and in particular, the devilish plot to mow down APC leaders and members who refuse to go along with him on his misadventure.

“We call on the security agencies to, as a matter of urgency, be alive to their duties before more havoc are wreaked by the desperation of the governor.”

However, the state government has also condemned the attack on the Oranmiyan House which housed Aregbesola Campaign Office in 2007.

The Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Funke Egbemode, in a statement called on the police to fish out the hoodlums who carried out the attack.

The commissioner also strongly dissociated the state government from any involvement in the attack, saying that it was wicked for anyone to attribute such mischief to a government that had invested heavily in the peace of the state.

Egbemode said, “The accusation that the government of Mr Adegboyega Oyetola had anything to do with Thursday’s attack on the Oranmiyan House is sad and laughable. It defies reasoning that a man who has invested so much in the peace of Osun in the last three years will descend that low.

“This government is united, it has all its ducks in a row. The Party is also united and its status and activities have been ratified by the national secretariat. There are no reasons to join issues with anyone, let alone engaging in violent act.

“Those who are grabbing at straws to stay afloat, especially because their rebels’ den has fallen like a pack of cards, should try to fix their fortunes instead of blaming everybody, but themselves, for what has happened to them,” the statement partly reads.”

Money Ritual: Ogun Teenage Killers Arraigned, Remanded

The four teenagers, who allegedly killed a 20-year-old girl identified as Sofiat Kehinde, have been ordered by an Abeokuta Magistrates Court sitting in Isabo, Ogun State to be remanded in prison for two months.

The suspects, Balogun Mustaqeem, 20; Majekodunmi Soliudeen,18; Abdulgafar Lukman,19; and Waris Oladeinde,18; were arraigned on Thursday on two counts of conspiracy and murder.

Recall that the teenagers were apprehended in the early hours of last Saturday burning the head of Sofiat in a local pot for ritual.

Inspector Lawrence Balogun, police prosecutor, while speaking in the court noted that the defendants committed the offence around 11pm on January 28 at the Kugba area in Abeokuta.

He further stated that the suspects conspired among themselves to kill Sofiat, who was Soliudeen’s girlfriend.

The prosecutor added that the defendants murdered the girl by cutting off her head with a cutlass, adding that they had plans to use her for money rituals.

According to Balogun, the offence contravened sections 324 and 316 of the Criminal Code Laws of Ogun State 2006.

He said, “They unlawfully killed Sofiat Kehinde, aged 20, by cutting off her head, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable Section 319 of the Criminal Code Laws of Ogun State, 2006.”

The Magistrate, I. O Abudu, who did not take the plea of the defendants, ordered that they be remanded in prison.

Abudu ordered that the defendants be remanded in the Oba Custodial Centre pending legal advice from the Ogun State Directorate of Public Prosecutions.

She, however, adjourned the case till March 14 for mention.